Best new theater space (opened in the last year or so)

Beverly Arts Center
Of the major new theater spaces to open within the past year (among them Noble Fool’s location in the Loop and The Raven’s in Edgewater), it is the $10 million dollar, brand-spanking-new Beverly Arts Center in southwestern Chicago that is truly buzz-worthy. The boxy, looks-just-like-the-Steppenwolf, 420-seat theater has an enormous stage, comfy, mohair seats and excellent acoustics. And, on sale at the art-oriented gift shop: a van Gogh plush doll for kids, complete with removable ear. Can’t really beat that, can you?